System for Ultraviolet Protection and Flotation

ABSTRACT

A system to provide at least partial ultraviolet protection and at least partial buoyancy is provided. The system may include a suit and a flotation vest. The suit may have an integrated first connector and may be configured to at least partially cover a user&#39;s torso region and a portion of the user&#39;s appendages. The flotation vest may have at least one mating connector to detachably connect the suit and the vest when the integrated first connector and the mating connector are engaged with one another.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to systems and components thereof that provide a user with at least partial protection from ultraviolet radiation and/or with personal flotation assistance.

BACKGROUND

Infants, toddlers, small children, or individuals who do not know how to swim may need to use personal flotation devices or life preservers while participating in water activities in a swimming pool or a lake at a public recreational area. Swimwear or bodysuits may also be used to protect an individual from ultraviolet radiation while they are participating in water activities. Swimwear and flotation devices may be combined for convenience purposes. However, swimwear/flotation device combinations tend to be bulky and uncomfortable when an individual is no longer participating in water activities or taking a break from water activities.

SUMMARY

A system to provide partial ultraviolet protection and partial buoyancy is provided. The system includes a suit and a flotation vest. The suit has an integrated first connector and is configured to at least partially cover a user's torso region and a portion of the user's appendages. The flotation vest has a mating connector configured to detachably connect the suit and vest when the integrated first connector and the mating connector are engaged with one another.

An activity suit for outdoor activities is provided. The activity suit includes a waist portion extending about a waist region, a first connector integrated with the waist portion at a belt buckle region, and a second connector integrated with the waist portion at a rear central region opposite the belt buckle region. The suit is sized to cover a user's torso region and a portion the user's appendages. The connectors are configured to engage with mating connectors of a flotation vest in order to secure the flotation vest and suit to one another.

A flotation vest is provided. The flotation vest includes a front portion and a back portion. The front portion is secured to the back portion by a pair of shoulder restraints that each wraps around one of each of a user's shoulders and a second pair of side restraints that each wraps around one of each of the user's side regions. The flotation vest also includes first and second connectors that engage corresponding connectors of a separate swim suit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of an example of a suit to at least partially protect a user from ultraviolet radiation having at least one integrated connector.

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the suit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a front view of an example of a flotation vest which may be detachably connected to the suit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the flotation vest of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a rear view of the flotation vest of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a front view of an example of a system in which the suit of FIG. 1 and the flotation vest of FIG. 3 are secured to one another.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the system of FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein. It is to be understood, however, that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples and other embodiments may take various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; some features could be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present disclosure. As those of ordinary skill in the art will understand, various features illustrated and described with reference to any one of the figures may be combined with features illustrated in one or more other figures to produce embodiments that are not explicitly illustrated or described. The combinations of features illustrated provide representative embodiments for typical applications. Various combinations and modifications of the features consistent with the teachings of this disclosure, however, could be desired for particular applications or implementations.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an example of a suit to at least partially protect a user from ultraviolet radiation is shown, generally referred to as a suit 10 herein. The suit 10 may be various types of swimwear including swim garments, swimsuits, wetsuits, board shorts, surf trunks, rash guards, rash vests, etc. The suit 10 may be stylized as a character, such as an action hero or an animal. The suit 10 may assist in providing various types of play patterns for the user, such as role play or fantasy. The suit 10 may include a front side 12 and a back side 14. The front side 12 or the back side 14 of the suit 10 may include a designated surface area 15 that is sized for the placement of a message or logo. The size, shape, and location of the designated surface area 15 may be altered to fit various messages or logos. For example, the designated surface area 15 may be shaped and sized to fit the logo of a popular superhero or action hero. It may also be advantageous to provide a swimwear/flotation device combination where the flotation device may be decoupled from the swimwear while an individual is taking a break from participating in water activities. Therefore, the suit 10 may include at least one integrated connector to engage with another connector of a flotation vest.

For example, a first connector 16 may assist in securing a flotation vest to an exterior of the suit 10 as further described below. The first connector 16 may be integrated with a waist portion 18 of the suit 10. For example, the first connector 16 may be positioned at a belt buckle region 19 of the waist portion 18 on a front side of the suit 10. A second connector 17 may be integrated with the waist portion 18 of the suit 10. For example, the second connector 17 may be positioned at a rear central region 21 on a back side of the suit 10 and substantially opposite the belt buckle region 19. The first connector 16 and the second connector 17 may be secured to the suit 10 and at least partially hidden by other portions of the suit 10. The disclosure, however, should not be construed as limited to the configuration depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, but rather may include other configurations with one or more connectors integrated with the suit 10 at various locations thereof.

The suit 10 may include a central portion 20 which covers a user's torso region. The suit 10 may include sleeve portions 22 and leg portions 24 to cover at least a portion of the user's appendages (arms and/or legs). In one example, and as described above, the suit 10 may assist in protecting the user from ultraviolet radiation. Alternatively, the sleeve portions 22 and leg portions 24 may extend to cover more or an entirety of the appendages (arms and/or legs) of the user.

The suit 10 may include a fastener 26 to assist in securing the suit 10 to a user. Zippers, buttons, or hook and loop fasteners, (e.g., Velcro™) are examples suitable for fastener 26. The fastener 26 is shown on the back side 14 of the suit 10 but may be placed at other suitable locations on either the front side 12 or back side 14 of the suit 10. The suit 10 may be made from a fabric or cloth material such as, but not limited to, cotton, nylon, lycra or elastane (i.e., spandex™) polyester, neoprene (e.g., wet suit material), or other materials.

FIGS. 3 through 5 show an example of a flotation device, generally referred to as a flotation vest 28. The flotation vest 28 is sized to cover at least part of the suit 10. The flotation vest 28 may be of a material having bouyant characteristics in water. The flotation vest 28 includes a front portion 30 and a back portion 32. The front portion 30 is sized to cover at least part of the front side 12 of the suit 10, which may include at least part of the central portion 20 of the suit 10. The back portion 32 is sized to cover a portion of the back side 14 of the suit 10. The front portion 30 may be secured to the back portion 32 by a first pair of restraints 34. The first pair of restraints 34 may wrap over each of a user's shoulders. The front portion 30 may also be secured to the back portion 32 by a second pair of restraints 36. The second pair of restraints 36 may be configured to wrap around each of a user's side regions and under each of a user's arms.

The front portion 30 and back portion 32 of the flotation vest 28 may be comprised of a material, such as fabric or cloth, which surrounds or houses one or more flotation compartments 38. Examples of suitable material for the front portion 30 and the back portion 32 include, but are not limited to, cotton, nylon, lycra, elastane, polyester, or neoprene. The flotation compartments 38 may be filled with air or a material having buoyant characteristics in water. Examples of suitable material for the flotation compartments 38 include, but are not limited to, cellophane polyethylene (PE) foam, Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foam, polyvinyl-chloride foam, or Nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) foam. The flotation compartments 38 may vary in size relative to one another may be arranged with one another to define a muscle pattern. The flotation compartments 38 may be selectively inflatable. For example, the each of the flotation compartments 38 may include a port (not shown) sized to facilitate connection with an air pump (not shown) such that the flotation compartments 38 may be inflated.

The front portion 30 or the back portion 32 may include a designated surface area 39 that is sized for the placement of a message or logo. The size and shape of the designated surface area 39 may be altered to fit various messages or logos. As mentioned above, the designated surface area 39 may be shaped and sized to fit the logo of popular superheroes or action heroes.

The first pair of restraints 34 and second pair of restraints 36 may be comprised of a fabric or cloth material. The fabric material may include any suitable fabric material, such as, but not limited to, cotton, nylon, lycra, elastane, polyester, neoprene, or any other fabric material. The first pair of restraints 34 and second pair of restraints 36 may be made from a non-elastic material, such as nylon, or an elastic material, such as lycra or elastane. Some of the restraints may be made of a non-elastic material while other restraints may be made of an elastic material. For example, the first pair of restraints 34 may be made of a non-elastic material while the second pair of restraints 36 may be made of an elastic material.

The flotation vest 28 may include mating connectors 40 that are configured to engage with the first connector 16 and the second connector 17 of the suit 10 in order to detachably secure the flotation vest 28 to the exterior of the suit 10. FIGS. 3 through 5 depict the two mating connectors 40; one secured to the front portion 30 of the flotation vest 28 while the other is secured to the back portion 32 of the flotation vest 28. The disclosure, however, should not be construed as limited to the configuration depicted in FIGS. 3 through 5, and includes other configurations with one or more connectors 40 that may be connected to the flotation vest 28 at other various locations.

The first connector 16 and the second connector 17 of the suit 10 and the mating connectors 40 of the flotation vest 28 may be comprised of opposing components of a fastening device, such as a snap buckle, release buckle, snap-release buckle, double ring buckle, cam buckle, or any other suitable fastening device/buckle.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, an example of a two-in-one system is illustrated which may include the suit 10 and flotation vest 28 secured thereto. The mating connectors 40 of the flotation vest 28 are shown engaged with the first connector 16 and second connector 17 of the suit 10, securing the flotation vest 28 to the suit 10. The first pair of restraints 34 is wrapped over each of the user's shoulders while the second pair of restraints 36 is wrapped around the user's side regions and under the user's arms.

The words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. As previously described, the features of various embodiments may be combined to form further embodiments of the disclosure that may not be explicitly described or illustrated. While various embodiments could have been described as providing advantages or being preferred over other embodiments or prior art implementations with respect to one or more desired characteristics, those of ordinary skill in the art recognize that one or more features or characteristics may be compromised to achieve desired overall system attributes, which depend on the specific application and implementation. These attributes may include, but are not limited to cost, strength, durability, life cycle cost, marketability, appearance, packaging, size, serviceability, weight, manufacturability, ease of assembly, etc. As such, embodiments described as less desirable than other embodiments or prior art implementations with respect to one or more characteristics are not outside the scope of the disclosure and may be desirable for particular applications. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A system to provide ultraviolet (UV) protection and partial buoyancy comprising: a suit comprising an integrated first connector and configured to at least partially cover and provide UV protection to a user's torso region and a portion the user's appendages; and a flotation vest comprising a buoyant material and a mating connector configured to detachably connect the suit and vest when the integrated first connector and the mating connector are engaged with one another.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the integrated first connector is disposed at a waist portion on a front side of the suit.
 3. The system of claim 2 further comprising a second integrated connector disposed at the waist portion on a back side of the suit.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first integrated connector and the mating connector are interlocking components of a snap-release buckle.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the flotation vest further comprises a front portion and a back portion that are connected to one another by a first pair of restraints each oriented to wrap over one of the user's shoulders.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the flotation vest further comprises a front portion and a back portion that are connected to one another by a second pair of restraints each oriented to wrap around one of the user's side regions.
 7. An outdoor activity suit comprising: a waist portion sized to extend about a waist region of a user; a belt buckle region upon the waist portion; a first connector integrated with the waist portion at the belt buckle region; a rear central region opposite the belt buckle region; and a second connector integrated with the waist portion at the rear central region, wherein the suit is sized to at least partially cover and provide UV protection to a user's torso region and a portion of the user's appendages, and wherein the connectors are sized to engage with mating connectors of a flotation vest to secure the flotation vest to the suit.
 8. The suit of claim 7, wherein the first connector, the second connector, and the mating connectors are arranged with one another for connection as a belt buckle assembly.
 9. The suit of claim 7, wherein the suit is sized and of a material to at least partially protect a user from UV exposure when mounted thereupon.
 10. The suit of claim 7 further comprising a front side defining a surface area sized for placement of a logo or message.
 11. The suit of claim 7 further comprising a rear side defining a surface area sized for placement of a logo or message.
 12. The suit of claim 7 further comprising a sleeve portion and a leg portion sized to cover a portion of the user's appendages.
 13. The suit of claim 7, wherein the suit is made of one of cotton, nylon, lycra, elastane, polyester, or neoprene.
 14. A flotation vest comprising: a front portion; a back portion secured to the front portion by a pair of shoulder restraints each sized to wrap around a user's shoulders and a second pair of side restraints each sized to wrap around one of the user's side regions; a first connector mounted to the front portion; and a second connector mounted to the back portion, wherein the connectors are oriented on the vest to engage with corresponding connectors of a separate swim suit.
 15. The vest of claim 14, wherein the vest is made of a material having at least partial buoyancy characteristics.
 16. The vest of claim 14, wherein the front portion defines one or more flotation compartments.
 17. The vest of claim 16, wherein the one or more flotation compartments are stylized as muscles.
 18. The vest of claim 16, wherein the one or more flotation compartments are selectively inflatable.
 19. The vest of claim 16, wherein the one or more flotation compartments are sized to receive buoyant materials.
 20. The vest of claim 14, wherein the vest is stylized as a character. 